Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins celebrates a solo home run against the Toronto Blue Jays in the sixth inning.Steven Garcia/Getty Images
Byron Buxton homered for the third time in four games and Ryan Jeffers hit a go-ahead, two-run drive that led the Minnesota Twins over the Toronto Blue Jays 7- 1 on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series.
Daulton Varsho homered off Bailey Ober (3-1) in the fourth and Jeffers put the Twins ahead to stay at 2-1 in the bottom half against Kevin Gausman (2-2).
Buxton homered two innings later, his team-leading eighth, and Austin Martin added an RBI single later in the sixth. Buxton was 3 for 4 in his third three-hit game this season.
Minnesota won for the second time in its last nine games and the third time in 14.
Kevin Gausman allowed four runs, four hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings.Steven Garcia/Getty Images
Ober allowed four hits in six-plus innings. Anthony Banda, Andrew Morris and Justin Topa combined for two-hit relief for a Twins bullpen that entered with a 5.30 ERA, fourth-worst among big league bullpens.
Gausman allowed four runs, four hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings. The four earned runs off him were a season high.
Throwing errors by third baseman Kazuma Okamoto and shortstop Andrés Giménez contributed to a pair of unearned runs in a three-run eighth.
Up next
Toronto LHP Patrick Corbin (0-0, 3.72 ERA) starts Friday against Minnesota RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (0-4, 6.30).